1. Technical Field
The invention relates to a method for producing bundle packages, in particular bundle packages for cigarettes (cigarette carton), wherein a group of packs, in particular cigarette packs, is encased in an outer casing to form the bundle package, and wherein the packs respectively exhibit a code, in particular a barcode, and the group of packs is encased in the outer casing such that the code of the packs is not concealed by the outer casing and that a means for concealing the code of the packs, in particular a pre-cut piece or an (adhesive) label, and a code for the bundle package are then arranged on the bundle package. The invention further relates to a device for implementing the method. Finally, the invention relates to a bundle package produced, in particular, according to the method.
2. Prior Art
Bundle packages have long been known, particularly in the field of the cigarette industry. Here the packs or cigarette packs which form the content of the bundle package or cigarette carton are generally arranged side by side and, preferably, in a plurality of rows one behind the other. A preferred formation is an arrangement of packs in two rows of five packs each. The pack content is generally enveloped in an outer casing made of a packaging material such as paper or board, which, if necessary, can be surrounded by an additional protective wrapping, for example of polypropylene, polyethylene, cellophane or the like, in order to seal the bundle package in an aroma-tight manner.
Furthermore, it is customary to provide each of the packs with a code, in particular a machine-readable code such as a barcode. Apart from information relating to the manufacture or about the manufacturer, the code can also provide information for the actual sale to the end customer, for example information for retrieving the sale price from a product database or the like.
In addition, bundle packages are known in which the outer casing is configured such that the packs are partially visible. This category of bundle packages also includes the so-called “Naked Wrap”, in which the outer casing is formed merely by a transparent protective wrapping of polypropylene. This results in the packs or their code being visible or readable through the outer casing. In the sale of these and similar bundle packages, the problem exists, however, that the code of the pack instead of the code of the bundle package may accidentally be read in, which can result in a false computation of the sale price of the bundle package.
One solution to this problem consists in providing the bundle package with a pre-cut piece, for example a label, for covering the code of the pack. This label can also exhibit the code for the bundle package.